Of Peter Gray's Declining Student Resilience A Serious Problem For Colleges?

Students and Seroquel
In a piece titled "Declining Student Resilience: A Serious Problem for Colleges", Peter Gray (Ph.D.) examines the growing trend of mental instability among university students. Collegiate faculty, and, in particular, college counselors, have reported higher rates of psychiatric disorders in campus resident's year after year. Though Gray concedes that this problem is multifaceted, he places the majority of blame two parties: academia and parenting, proposing that their tendency to fold under the slightest of pressure compounded with an ever-present overbearing streak is rotting higher education from the inside-out.
The Boston College Professor cites several examples which set the stage for the crux of his argument: the
Issues surrounding education/mental health require a comprehensive approach if one wishes to get at the essence of the problem, and unfortunately, the arguments puts forth in this piece severely lack in both substance and rationality.
Many aspects of Gray's piece tend to be very flawed, but one area where we can find common ground is on self-rumination and its importance. Introspection is not only beneficial for those who suffer from mental illness, it has practical application in all facets of life, especially in academia. Rainer Maria Rilke has always been able to collect thoughts of my own which would otherwise be incoherent, and during my analysis of this piece, a passage from Letters to a Young Poet kept coming to mind as it sums up my opinion on inward contemplation rather
While he posits that the lack of self-examination among the youth is a direct result of docile parenting, the minimal amount of introspection he himself partakes in is astounding. Being a professor, it is unnerving that he does not see a contradiction within his own statements. Education is not the mere feeding of information from one party to another, it is meant to be an utter recalibration of how we view ourselves and the rest of the world. So yes, in a sense, all levels of education are to some extent responsible in fostering reflection among their students, for if they fail to, labeling those institutions "places of higher education" would be a misnomer. Though his intent is altruistic in nature, he also seems to be slightly disconnected from those he is attempting to help. The "toughen up" mentality presented appears sound initially, but I question the applicability of said statement to those with mental illness. Self-examination and personal responsibility being the means by which young adults achieve growth is admirable, but telling kids to just "pull it together" might come with a slew of unforeseen consequences. Questions regarding the effectiveness of Grays proposals (not to mention whether these practices could be implemented) require further